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So your marketing department has put together an impressive list of mobile subscribers, and in general, things appear to be going along fantastically. But as time goes on and you watch your numbers, you can’t help but notice that a small yet noticeable percentage of people are opting out, leaving your mobile subscription list.

Granted, no one likes to be rejected, so this rankles a bit. It makes you wonder why anyone would want to distance themselves from your wonderful company. What’s gone wrong? Is it them? Is it you?

It’s probably you, and here’s some reasons why. Any similarity between these opt-out reasons and reasons why couples break up are purely coincidental.

Probably…

You Talk Too Much

We all have that person in our life who drones on and on, until eventually we can’t take it anymore, and say something like “Would you please shut it!?” Your subscribers can’t say that to you when your business sends too many texts (well, actually they can, but it doesn’t do them any good), so instead they vote with their feet, or to be more precise, with their finger on their mouse, clicking on the “opt out” link.

What’s defined as talking too much? Conventional marketing wisdom says that you should only send one or two messages per week for each marketing campaign or promotion. More than that is overkill, and any savvy marketer is aware that their business is probably not the only one that their subscribers are getting texts from. You don’t want to have a hand in inundating these poor folks.

They Sobered Up

Don’t laugh, this is actually a thing. Picture, if you will, a group of friends who go to their favorite local pub and during the course of the evening, they end up all having quite a few. Then one of them happens to see a promotional flyer, where people can sign up for the establishment’s exclusive club and get on their text messaging list. Since alcohol tends to encourage not well thought out actions, everyone signs up.

The following week, the subscribers start getting the promotional texts, and everyone is wondering why on Earth they’re getting what amounts to commercials sent to their smart phones. Then their memory, no longer drowning in lager, kicks in and they remember. Their next action usually is to opt out.

Don’t take it personally. People do all sorts of odd things when they’ve been drinking.

They Have Outgrown You

Perhaps your business offered your subscribers something that interested them a year ago, but at present, not so much. Tastes and trends change, and sometimes people simply move on. There’s not much you can do about this.

They Don’t Like Your Tone

Finally, it may be a case of not liking how you come across. The article “5 Common Reasons Why Mobile Subscribers Opt-Out” touches upon such no-no’s as relying too much on slang, industry terms, acronyms and abbreviations, or text speak. Sometimes, in an effort to come across as hip and current, marketing promotions end up sounding silly, grating, and unprofessional.

And then there’s humor, which at best is a subjective thing. We live in an age where many people have suddenly acquired a very thin skin, and packs of individuals roam the countryside, looking for things to get offended over. Perhaps the joke in that last promotion got someone in a lather, and they opted out.

So, What Can You Do To Stop This?

The moral of the story is: text no more than twice a week, keep it relevant, keep it professional, and offer something worthwhile. It may also be worth trying to put together some kind of follow-up mechanism to use on those who opt out, and find out their reasons why.